The Himachal Pradesh High Court has upheld the termination of a Junior T/Mate appointed by the state electricity board after finding that his matriculation certificate had been issued by an unrecognized education board.
Delivering the judgment, Justice Ajay Mohan Goel ruled that the petitioner had secured employment on the basis of a certificate issued by a board that had no legal recognition. The court held that the employer was justified in cancelling the appointment once the discrepancy surfaced.
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Background of the Case
The petitioner, Sandeep Kumar, had applied for the post of Junior T/Mate with the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Limited (HPSEBL) under an advertisement issued in June 2020.
He cleared the recruitment process with 78.80 marks and secured the 52nd position in the merit list. Following this, he received an appointment letter on 8 March 2021 and joined the post on 16 March 2021.
However, during the verification of documents, officials noticed a discrepancy in his educational certificate. The petitioner had claimed that he passed matriculation in 2010 from the Central Board of Higher Education, New Delhi.
On scrutiny, the authorities concluded that this board was listed as a fake or unrecognized board by the Himachal Pradesh Board of School Education. A show-cause notice was issued asking the petitioner to explain the issue.
The petitioner responded that there was no official notification declaring the board fake and requested the department to clarify which boards were recognized for employment purposes.
Unsatisfied with his explanation, the electricity board terminated his services on 22 April 2021.
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Arguments by the Petitioner
Counsel for the petitioner argued that the termination was arbitrary and legally unsustainable.
It was contended that the Central Board of Higher Education, from which the petitioner obtained his certificate, was a recognized institution. The lawyer further argued that the Himachal Pradesh Board of School Education did not have the authority to declare another board invalid.
The petitioner also claimed that the recruitment decision was not based solely on his matriculation certificate, but also on his technical qualifications and performance in the selection process.
On these grounds, the court was urged to quash the termination order and direct the authorities to reinstate him with all consequential benefits.
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Stand of the Respondents
The electricity board and other respondents defended the termination.
They argued that the recruitment advertisement clearly provided that 60 marks in the selection process were based on the candidate’s matriculation marks, making the certificate a crucial factor in determining merit.
The respondents also produced documents showing that as early as 1999, the Directorate of Education of the Government of NCT of Delhi had issued a public notice warning that certain private institutions-including the Central Board of Higher Education-were not recognized authorities to issue academic certificates.
In addition, notifications issued by the Himachal Pradesh Board of School Education had similarly cautioned students and institutions about such unrecognized boards.
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Court’s Observations
The court noted that the matriculation certificate was not merely a basic eligibility requirement but also directly influenced the merit ranking of candidates in the recruitment process.
Justice Goel observed that the certificate submitted by the petitioner showed that he had secured 483 out of 600 marks, which significantly contributed to his overall merit score.
The court also examined the address of the board mentioned in the case record and found that it corresponded to the same institution earlier flagged as unrecognized in official notices.
Rejecting the petitioner’s argument that later notifications should apply only prospectively, the court relied on earlier public notices issued in 1999 by the Directorate of Education, which had already declared such institutions unrecognized.
“The matriculation certificate of the petitioner cannot be treated as a valid certificate,” the court observed while examining the records placed before it.
The bench further held that the principles of natural justice were not violated because the petitioner had been issued a show-cause notice and given an opportunity to explain his position before the termination order was passed.
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Decision
After examining the facts and documents on record, the Himachal Pradesh High Court concluded that the petitioner had obtained employment on the strength of a certificate issued by a board that lacked legal recognition.
Finding no illegality in the employer’s action, the court dismissed the writ petition and upheld the termination order.
Case Title: Sandeep Kumar v. Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Ltd. & Others
Case No.: CWP No. 2908 of 2021
Decision Date: 28 February 2026
